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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26531587">Of Scents and Shirts</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kca1516/pseuds/Kca1516'>Kca1516</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Marvel Cinematic Universe</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alpha Bucky Barnes, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Enemies to Lovers, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mutual Pining, Omega Sam Wilson, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Smut</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 05:46:55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>20,652</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26531587</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kca1516/pseuds/Kca1516</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Sam Wilson hates Bucky Barnes.</p><p>Bucky Barnes hates Sam Wilson.</p><p>It’s the way its always been.</p><p>That is until the alpha’s shirt ends up stuffed in Sam’s gym bag, and all of a sudden the omega’s body starts to recognize Bucky as his mate.</p><p>Then it becomes a little bit harder for Sam to continue lying to himself.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>James "Bucky" Barnes/Sam Wilson, Steve Rogers/Tony Stark, past Riley/Sam Wilson - Relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>121</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>921</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Yay this is finally here! Originally this was going to be a really long one-shot but editing got too difficult like that. I will say the first ch is really just setting up for a lot of the plot so it does jump around a little bit before we get into the good stuff aka Sam and Bucky interaction, so I hope you stick around, i hope this doesn't suck and thanks for reading!</p>
    </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>edited: 2/20/21</p><p>*this isn't and will never be the greatest thing i've ever written as it was more of a for fun thing, and a cracky exercise in writing shorter stories that do not need to be painfully detailed but enjoyable and readable nonetheless, that being said every few months I try to go through my stories and edit it them over time so this fic and its parts will aways be evolving*</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It started with a shirt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Granted, Sam Wilson hadn’t meant for it to start at all.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But here he was, and there it sat, and really he had been damned since day fucking one.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>~~~~~~~~~~</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam Wilson hated Bucky Barnes, and Bucky Barnes hated Sam Wilson. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>No one ever questioned it, or asked for clarification, because it would be just as redundant as asking why the sun wasn’t purple. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sky was blue, lightning accompanied thunder, and Sam Wilsom and Bucky Barnes hated each other. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Even when The Winter Soldier had been officially adopted by the Avengers, and Tony and Steve had fixed their problems and finally mated, the animosity between Sam and Bucky had never dwindled. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They didn’t get the same happy ending their friends did. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Threatening each other's lives on a daily basis was as close as they would get. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sometimes, when Bucky held Sam down, or when Sam had a knife pressed to Bucky’s throat, he would see a flash in Bucky’s eyes that mirrored a deeply buried want in Sam. But the feeling was always there and gone too quick to know for sure, and neither of them ever acted on it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Those small ‘what if’s’ faded to memories that Sam would deny he took out every once and awhile and cradled. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Usually their arguments were petty and trivial. Now that all the Avengers lived in close quarters at the compound, Bucky and Sam’s bickering had only tripled. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If they bumped into each other in the morning, they’d argue about who got the last eggs for an omelette. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam usually did.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If they sat down to try and watch a show, they’d steal the clicker from one another to change the channel no matter what was on. This undoubtedly always resulted in the couch being overturned, and the two wrestling on the floor like children.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam usually won.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If they were deciding what to order for dinner, they would fight over getting pizza or tacos.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam usually got what he wanted.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If they ended up being paired together for training (Steve’s futile attempts to get his two best friend’s to be on amicable terms) the training mats soon became a battleground. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It had happened only once, but the experience had been so stressful there had been a communal agreement never to let it happen again. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The session had started off well enough up until Bucky decided to pull one of his punches. It was his attempt to not completely crush his opponent, even though he had been assured by everyone that they could take it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The alpha could still remember watching himself, unwillingly crushing the fluttering windpipes of his innocent victims, like he had been forcibly strapped to the passenger seat when there was no one driving the car. Bucky couldn’t bring himself to give into his friend’s reassurances.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam couldn’t stand it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If he could, his eyes would bleed the red of an alpha.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t you dare go easy on me, Barnes,” Sam had growled, “I’m an omega. I’m not incompetent.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Those had been the damning words. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It had sparked a fight that would come to be ranked third worst in the tower. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was one of the few omega’s on the team. Although his friend’s never looked down on him for it, he had always pushed himself to his limits to make sure no one pitied him.</span>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The team didn’t regard him any differently, despite what the media might say, but Tony and Wanda, the only other omega’s on the team, understood what it meant to feel less then. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>So when Bucky held his punches, it bothered Sam more than he cared to admit.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Of course, when confronted with the omega’s accusations, Bucky had spit out that he wasn’t holding back anymore then he would with anyone else. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was already too late; the two didn’t need more than a spark to set a wildfire. Soon enough they were at each other's throats, their friends nothing but blurry bystanders as their worlds narrowed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You're a pigheaded alpha!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Crazy omega will find anything to be mad about!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Natasha had laid into both of them before it turned physical. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was just threatening enough to get them to walk away from the fight. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Needless to say, Steve didn’t try to pair them up together anymore. But even when they were actively kept away from each other, aggression was the nature of their relationship. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes hated each other, always did, always would.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Until suddenly, they didn’t. </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>~~~~~~~~~~</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>To this day, Sam would deny knowing how one of Bucky Barnes's putrid, stained, grey cotton henley’s had ended up in his bag, but that would be a bold faced lie.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam could remember the day in vivid clearity. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had started the morning with high hopes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega had turned his alarm off the night before; it was officially the weekend which meant no training before sunrise. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam had been pleased to wake up naturally at nine-thirty to trails of light shining in through his speckled windows, and his own sheets wrapped snugly around him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p><span>Though his nights were mostly spent at his room in The Avenger’s Compound, Sam had never been able to part from his own personal apartment. His complex</span> <span>had been his home ever since he had gotten out of the army.</span></p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ever since Riley.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>What once had been foreign to him, a place to call his own, had welcomed him in from the wars that raged in the world outside. Maybe more importantly, it had protected him from the war raging in his own mind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam had found safety in the roots he had put down here, and in doing so, he had come to connect with a part of himself he used to hide away in shame.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was a fighter, and he was an omega. He had learned how to marry the two ideas without having to sacrifice one; he couldn’t give up his apartment even when Tony told him he had a place at the compound.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s apartment smelled like him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Layers of his scent blanketed the walls and floor, like any good, lived in apartment should.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was a safe haven where he could forgo his armor and sink into his own quietness with no one to judge him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was home.</span>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega had carried on with his day as usual. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had eaten a good breakfast, one where no one fought over the last piece of bacon or chocolate chip pancake, and ignored the silence that ricocheted in his brain. He wouldn’t deny he had grown used to the rowdy family he had found with the team.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Nonetheless, Sam had found himself purring with satisfaction as he cleaned the dishes, falling into the pleasure of domesticity. It was nice to pretend that he wasn’t an Avenger for a little while, that the world didn’t rest solely on his shoulders all the time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After breakfast, he had driven himself to the compound to hit the gym before going back home where he planned to plop himself in front of the T.V. and eat junk food into the late evening. He had a sparring session with Steve to get to, but he wasn’t in a rush.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For once, the omega was able to drive leisurely with his favorite music playing in the background, and when he got to the compound he was able to park in his favorite spot.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A skip in his step, Sam shouldered his bag and went inside. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>On his way to the gym, he passed his friends in the corridors. Tony, Wanda, Nat, Vision, even Rhodes, who was here on business, had all stopped to greet him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam could recall a time when he had sworn to himself he wouldn’t get attached to these people. That this would just be work, and nothing more. He had already learned his lesson on letting people in, and how it only proved to hurt him in the end. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>But one by one his teammates had all wormed their way into his heart, and now he couldn’t imagine his life without them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Unable to waste too much of his time talking, Sam had passed by his friends quickly. He knew if he got distracted and ended up late, Steve would make him regret it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They had planned to spar earlier in the week, and Sam was eager to play another round of let’s kick Captain America’s Star Spangled Ass. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The omega had always prided himself on the way he was able to go toe to toe with even the toughest alpha’s in his military days, so when the literal prime alpha had been offered to him on a silver platter, Sam had been foaming at the mouth. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Sam,” Steve called out, having heard the slap of Sam’s footsteps from down the hall.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam rolled his eyes as the door closed behind him, and he gave a wave of welcome. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey, America,” he responded.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve stepped away from the punching bag he had been bruising to give his friend a proper greeting.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Captain’s tank top was stuck to his body, his fists were wrapped and reddened, and his scent drifted in dizzying circles. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Unlike most omega’s that met Steve, save Tony in the beginning, Sam had never been drawn to the man in any other way than as a friend. Yes, looking at him would make any omega pause, but the overwhelming musk of the alpha had become background noise to Sam long ago. Steve was Tony’s, and none of them would have it any other way.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>No, Sam’s type wasn’t big, blond, and beautiful. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A flash of metal, smoke, and cutting glacier eyes came to mind unwittingly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam firmly buried it under a mountain of repressed urges, and dreaded the day that an earthquake ripped through his defenses.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ready to get your ass beat,” Sam said, eager to get on with it to keep his mind from wandering further. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The friendly nature between them shifted. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A challenge had been issued. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A flair of dominance flirted in the way Steve’s chest puffed, and his spine straightened. Sam anticipated the sore ache that would penetrate his muscles, and turn his mind to clay.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” Steve said with a blinding smile.</span>
</p><p> </p><p><span>Sam was the first to duck under the ropes, and step</span> <span>into the boxing ring. </span></p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How about you get your lazy ass in here, and we’ll see about promises.”</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>~~~~~~~~~~</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam lost four out of seven rounds, but he was happy with his handful of favorable outcomes.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As had been expressed, the day had been a good one.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Even when Sam had gotten distracted by a hint of a smoke and sandalwood that had made his eyes cross. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The diversion had cost him the fifth match.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nonetheless, by the final round Sam and Steve were both sweaty and panting. Sam had given Steve a run for his money, and that was all that mattered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You cheated,” Sam said as they exited the ring, hanging off of each other like wet clothes on a line. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve snorted as he grabbed both their water bottles.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>An alpha taking care of a pack omega. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was an act Sam had learned to think of as one friend taking care of another, instead of a condescending gesture. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>After he had lost the bonds he found in the army, he had never expected to be in anything resembling a pack again. Getting to where he was now, he’d had to retrain his brain to recognize the friendliness genuinely equaled kindness. It didn’t insinuate he was incapable of doing things for himself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You say that every time we spar,” Steve said, squeezing the last drop of water out of his bottle.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The omega didn’t deny the satisfaction curling in his gut. He had worn out the supersoldier alpha as much as the supersoldier alpha had worn out him. Steve nudged him playfully so he would stop preening. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam replied with his own affectionate shove.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Because it’s true every time we spar,” the omega said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve barked out a disbelieving laugh as he wiped the sweat off his face with his equally soaked t-shirt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh no, I’ve seen the way you are with Bucky when he disagrees with you, I’m not touching</span>
  <em>
    <span> that</span>
  </em>
  <span> comment with a five foot pole.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam scowled. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Even he didn’t know if it was from Steve refusing to banter with him, or if it was simply the mere mention of Bucky Barnes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sour air didn’t stick around for long. Sam was self-aware; he knew that his and Bucky’s relationship dynamic bordered on ridiculous most days. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At least </span>
  <em>
    <span>Sam </span>
  </em>
  <span>knew how to laugh at himself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t think anything more than a grimace had passed Barnes’s face in years.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Anyway,” Steve continued, oblivious to Sam’s turn of thought, “Tony should be waiting for me by now, and I have to shower so I’m going to head off. I’ll see you in training, and next weekend we’re on to spar again, right?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve grabbed his bag and headed for the door. Sam had a distinct feeling that Steve’s two designated tasks aligned in some areas, and the omega raised an eyebrow that Steve purposefully ignored. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, we’re on. Bye Steve, don’t do anything I wouldn’t,” Sam called. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve flipped him off, and walked out the door for a meeting with his mate. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam chuckled to himself, despising the sliver of envy that speared itself through his sternum.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was okay with being single. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After he lost Riley, it had taken a lot for him to get where he was now. He knew he didn’t make it easier on himself when finding a partner either. Sam wasn’t going to settle for the first alpha that walked through the door just because his biology deemed it be so. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lonely nights had started to creep up on him. Nights where he longed for a strong grasp to wrap around him, make him feel small and cared for. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wanted someone to settle his speeding mind, and restrain him, and use him for all he was worth. </span>
</p><p><span>It was usually with that image in mind, a strong alpha pinning</span> <span>him to a mattress and fucking him sensless, that he came with one hand wrapped like a vice around his cock and three fingers trying their best to relieve the fire that burned in his core.</span></p><p>
  <span>On those long nights, a stolen name would tumble from his quivering lips. A name that made the faceless alpha on top of him a little less faceless. </span>
</p><p><span>Even now Sam’s knees shook</span> <span>in a way that had nothing to do with the previous workout. If Sam closed his eyes he could feel the cool of metal plating, like scales, petting his cheek, the tickle of a stray strand of hair whispering promises against the top of his forehead. </span></p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam Wilson firmly snapped his eyes open before his desires began to bleed into reality. Pheromones were a bitch, and if he stunk up the gym the team would never let him live it down. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Especially not when said pheromones were caused by a bastard that could be lurking behind every corner, ready to pounce and suley the perfect day Sam had had so far. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The realization decidingly did not fill him with the same excitement his dreams had taken to do. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Once the thought was there, it wouldn’t leave.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Paranoia began to rise in him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The gym was oddly empty. </span>
  <span>The equipment morphing into the shadows of his enemies all rising up to ambush him at once. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The familiar build of Bucky Barnes eager to join them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam blinked once and banished the image to the back of his mind. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was being ridiculous.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega rolled his shoulders down and back, rising from where he had been resting on the bench. He stretched backwards, the protest of his pulsating muscles a welcome distraction. He really needed to shower. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The omega picked up his gym bag, digging through the contents until he landed on a pair of clean clothes and his preferred soaps. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Although each Avenger had their own room, and built in bathroom attached, Tony had added communal showers in the gym so no one carried their sweaty, wafting bodies all through the compound.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was anticipating the sweet steam clouding the air, the solid pounding on his sore muscles, the bubbling, soapy suds against his tacky skin. The omega finished finding his things, and headed to the washroom.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Unbeknownst to Sam, this was the beginning of his downfall. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Admittingly, he was working double time to distract himself from the empty gym and the thoughts that followed, and he was purposefully disregarding the instincts that were telling him to look over his shoulder. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was no wonder he barely noticed the door to the washroom opening to reveal a glistening, naked chest until it was too late. Sam had just enough time to feel his stomach clench as the smell of smoke and gunpowder assaulted his nose.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam Wilson slammed straight into Bucky Barnes.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>My brain had a difficult time focusing on this while editing, but its here now and as with all my fics I go back and edit them more once the story is complete.</p><p>edited: 2/20/21</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“What the hell?” Sam squawked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A firm grip landed on his hips to steady him, the touch sizzling against his skin in the places his shirt had crept up his torso</span>
  <b>. </b>
</p><p>
  <span>In his own attempt to stay upright, Sam’s hands had ended up on Barnes’s very muscular, very bare chest.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Woah, woah,” Bucky said as they righted themselves. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t take the support away until he knew Sam was stable.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam couldn’t say he did the same. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was easy to picture pushing himself out of Bucky’s hold, and snapping at the man for being so unawares. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>But Sam’s mouth had run dry, his legs had become nothing short of paralyzed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was only as Sam’s gaze slowly trailed up past the droplets of water creeping their way down Bucky’s solid torso, and met the crisp, cool of his eyes, that he was able to jump back in haste. He ignored the way he could still feel the deft of metal fingers digging a now permanent tattoo into his hips. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why don’t you watch where you're going, asshole,” Sam muttered, knowing if he were to speak any louder he would risk a voice crack.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bending down to pick up his dropped personals, Sam was marginally grateful for the fallen clothes and soaps. It gave him an excuse to avoid the blatant awkwardness of the interaction in front of him, and the waxy butterflies that had erupted in his stomach. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dare he look up, he would be met with the fine threads of a damp towel, thankfully, still securely wrapped around Bucky’s hips, and the shadows and dips of the arms that he had clutched onto so tightly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s omega screamed at him to drop fully to his knees, head bent, submitting to the alpha.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It made his head spin; he ignored the call. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With all his belongings safely in his arms, Sam rose on a sturdy foundation. He would be strong, even if he didn’t feel it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bucky’s eyes flashed briefly. Sam traitorously wondered if the alpha also wanted him on his knees. He wondered if Bucky had to fight against the urge to put him there himself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky smirked at the omega, as if he knew exactly what had just gone through his head.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam glared, he wouldn’t give Bucky the satisfaction of knowing his charm was getting to him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How many before him had fallen prey to Barnes’s tricks? How many had groveled at Barnes’s feet because he had flashed a smile? Sam wouldn’t add his name to that list.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The tension continued to build, though neither deigned to speak, waiting for the other to take initiative. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam knew Bucky would break first. The same way he knew Bucky would break when they had their petty arguments. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>But something was different this time, different in a way Sam was entirely unprepared for. The alpha wasn’t backing down. An elated panic crawled up Sam’s throat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>This was wrong.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky always broke, he always gave out first. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Once again, the ground seemed to be pulled out from under him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A growl vibrated through Bucky, and in Sam’s internal crisis, his eyes automatically flickered to the floor. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A sign of submission.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Good, that’s better,” the murmured parise fell from Bucky’s lips too easily.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s breath hitched. He was cornered, and it was no wonder he lashed back out as things became all too real all too quickly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You know most people apologize when they run into someone,” Sam said, a caged animal flinging itself at the bars.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What are you doing?” Bucky asked instead, voice deeper and more melodic than Sam had ever heard it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam hated how heat began to pool in his lower abdomen. He could only hope Bucky didn’t notice, or chalked it up to the residual scents of the bathroom behind them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Where normally Sam would have insisted Bucky apologize before giving a reply of his own, none of their usual rules or boundaries seemed to apply to these circumstances.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Two instincts warred inside of him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>One was telling Sam to run, and get out of this situation before he broke something that could never be repaired. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The other instinct...well…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I was trying to get to the showers, until you decided to crash into me.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t the answer to the real question Bucky had asked, and Sam knew it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A tinge of the alpha’s disappointment made Sam want to whine his own distress.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A familiar flash of frustration passed Bucky’s face, but it didn’t stay very long. As if he hadn’t actually expected Sam to have enough courage to answer properly, and was unperturbed by Sam’s failings. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega’s gut twisted, and he cleared his suddenly parched throat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>”If you would excuse me,” he said, trying to casually brush past Bucky like he should have done in the beginning of all this.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But Bucky had a choice in this too, he wasn’t done yet. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A warm, solid hand shot out to grip Sam’s bicep. The omega was stopped just as he was about to push through the door to the showers. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam tensed. He was half ready to put up a fight, should it come to that, but that wasn’t why Bucky had stopped him. An unintentional flash of red made Sam melt.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s not allowed to touch you like that, pin you like that,” Bucky said, insistent in a way that was lost on Sam.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega was leaving half moon imprints on Bucky’s skin with how tightly he was holding onto him. Sam didn’t think Bucky minded even a little bit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What are you talking about?” Sam asked, pushing through the cloud in his head.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had no idea what Bucky was referring to, he also couldn’t really find it in him to care as long as Bucky kept looking at him like that. He had never felt like this with Bucky. Not even an inkling of submissive instinct had ever come over him around the man before this. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He ignored the blaring in his head that reminded him that was a downright lie. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha pulled him closer, dragging his teeth over the hollow of Sam’s ear in a whisper of a bite.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Steve</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Bucky growled, angrier than he had been previously, “he’s not allowed to touch you like that.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He acted like it made more sense the second time he said it.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It didn’t.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve hadn’t touched Sam in any way, especially not in an inappropriate way. More importantly, Barnes had no right to tell Sam who could or could not touch him in any way he saw fit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam opened his mouth to say just that, but Bucky was quick to cut him off.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Say it,” Bucky ordered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What-wha-” Sam stuttered out in a pathetic attempt at defending himself.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky’s cool, metal plated fingers gripped Sam’s chin gently.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Say it,” Bucky murmured, running his thumb over the indents of Sam’s bottom lip. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega found he couldn’t disobey even if he had wanted to. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“He won’t-he won’t touch me again,” Sam said, feeling something slot into place inside of him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky brushed their noses.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Good, omega,” he said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam full body shuddered at the praise, suddenly hyper aware of how long it had been since someone had talked to him like that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He went to flutter his fingertips along the back of Bucky’s neck... </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...but was met with empty air.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s half-lidded eyes shot wide open.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As if he had never been there to begin with, Bucky was gone. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A wisp of a memory now forever burned into Sam’s brain. Bucky had pried open a door, but hadn’t walked through, leaving Sam vulnerable with no defense. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha had gotten the answer he wanted, Sam’s promise, and then he had left. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was cruelly shocked out of the world the two had been caught up in. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wanted to be mad, he should really be mad, but he couldn’t muster up the false emotion. He was just confused, and </span>
  <em>
    <span>wanting.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Bucky had lay a claim on him, and now everything had changed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was suddenly hyper aware that he stunk of the alpha. Bucky’s smoke and wood scent clung to Sam like stringy mucus. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Something deep inside of him purred in contentment.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He shut it down as quickly as he could, ignoring the panic that accompanied it. No way had Bucky Barnes of all bastards gotten past his defenses, he wouldn’t allow it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam’s skin felt tight. He needed to rid himself of what was not his. Already trying to bury the entire interaction in his subconscious, the omega reached out a shaky hand and felt the cool of the door knob that was a stark contrast to the heat encompassing his body. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam opened the door, needing to escape the scene of the crime.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was entirely unprepared for the hidden secrets that lay inside Pandora’s box.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steam billowed from out of the door, its scent cloying in his nose. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam Wilson was going to kill Bucky Barnes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>~~~~~~~~~~</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As he stepped into the washroom, possessive, angry, horny alpha lingered and affronted his nostrils. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was as if someone had had an orgy in here, but the orgy had consisted of clones of Bucky Barnes. The world was a haze as slick began to gather at his entrance. The white panels of the private shower stalls blurred, and condensation had dewed on the connecting tile. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam’s mind was overpowered by the intoxicating, heady scent of Bucky. How he hated to admit to that, but he couldn’t deny his body's reaction to the scent of fertile, unmated, pissed alpha intermingling with the remaining fog. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How did his good day come to this? It had spiraled so quickly. He couldn’t even remember Bucky entering the gym, if he had he would have hightailed it out of there faster then even Steve could catch him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If Bucky had not come to workout, why would he take the trek down to the gym just to shower? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then again, maybe he knew how much the scent of his masturbation tendencies seemed to cling to every available surface, and decided he didn’t want to stink up his own room. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He probably wanted to make the whole team suffer through it. Or maybe just Sam in particular.  The omega grasped onto the shred of anger the thought initiated, pulling at it until it unraveled into something familiar. Anger was good; anger he could use to his advantage. This newfound connection between him and Bucky, he most certainly couldn’t.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“He’s not allowed to touch you.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The remnants of Bucky’s controlling tone boomed in his ears as if the alpha was still there. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Who the hell did Bucky Barnes think he was, ordering Sam around like he was a fifties housewife? Sam had half a mind to chase down the alpha solely to beat some sense into him, but the tender spot in his heart told him to do that would only open him up further to vulnerability,  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Still, Sam would not let Bucky win. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He inhaled deeply, pretending it didn’t make his vision blurr, and pushed on. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was determined to take that shower he had been anticipating since Steve’s first throw in the boxing ring. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Looking back on it, Sam realized it wasn’t determination or even spite that drove him onward instead of giving up, and going back to his own apartment to shower. It didn’t even really have anything to do with proving anything to Bucky, the alpha would never know how much he had affected Sam as long as he kept his mouth shut. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In truth it was that smell, of smoke and cherry pits, that he couldn’t walk away from. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Fuck you, Barnes,” Sam seethed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He ripped himself free of his shirt, ignoring how his nipples pebbled as Bucky’s scent plucked at them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was furious at himself for his own reaction, and he tore off his pants in the same frenzied way before marching into the shower.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The knob squeaked as Sam fiddled with it in order to turn the water to nothing less than scalding in his attempt to strip his flesh the way he had his clothes. At least Tony had enough money to always have hot running water.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>From that point on, it was up to the strength of his will power. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam had gotten past the difficult part. He was naked, and wet in more ways than one, and relaxing under the pulverizing press of pressurized water. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He brought his hands up, running them over his face before reaching for his shampoo.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It would be all too easy for his hands to start wandering. For his calloused fingers to wrap themselves along his shaft, and squeeze until he was fully hard. He could twist and manipulate his member until he was spilling over himself with Bucky’s scent a comfort to his mind. He could add his other hand to the mix if he so pleased; with the amount of slick gathering between his cheeks, he could easily slip two fingers in. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam imagined bracing himself against the wall to get a better angle, hitting the spot inside of him that made him moan and quiver. The stimulus from both ends would make him lax and pliant and he would come imagining those hands were another, a Brooklyn accent deep in his ear as warm lips pressed into his shoulder and…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was going to </span>
  <em>
    <span>kill </span>
  </em>
  <span>Bucky Barnes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam kept his shower professional. He wasn’t going to risk touching himself when he could still remember how Bucky’s arms had wrapped around him, the alpha’s flimsy towel hiding what the omega could only imagine. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam wouldn’t give into the pulsing ache. Bucky would not win for a second time that day. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That shower had ended up being one of the most stressful showers he had ever taken. He forced himself to imagine Bucky’s infuriating smug smile every time his mind strayed, and it helped keep him in check. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega turned the water off after a measly fifteen minutes. He had rushed through his routine instead of letting the water glide and sink into his aching muscles, leaving him irritable and unsatisfied. On the plus side, as his shower wore on, his own pheromones infiltrated the room and helped lessen the sharp intake of Bucky’s. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The two scents intertwined, fighting to see which one would hold out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Another filthy image popped in Sam’s head, and he hastily threw the curtain aside to get to his bag. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam snatched his towel from where he had hung it on the rack, drying himself off in record speed. He had wanted to finish his routine, now he just wanted to get out.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam threw the soaked towel into his bag when he was done with it, not caring that it was turning all his other clothes wet. He eagerly pulled on clean underwear, hating that the fabric got stuck to his damp legs. To top it off soapy suds dribbled down his forehead and stung his eyes, or was that sweat? </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam let out a frustrated growl. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he hoped taking shallow breaths would ease the assault of horny alpha.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It didn’t. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was too much, too damn much. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His sweatpants tented obviously, his anxiety skyrocketed as he fought off the basic urges that screamed within him, and the spark in his gut had turned into a roaring fire.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Digging his feet into his shoes without socks on, Sam realized how ridiculous he had been to think he could outsmart biology. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was as Sam finally threw the strap of his bag across his shoulder, not caring that it was unzipped, that something caught the side of his eye. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam froze.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He couldn’t help it; it was like he didn’t have any control over his body. Or maybe his body was taking the control back.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There, laying so innocently five feet away from him, crumpled in a heap on the floor, was the t-shirt Bucky had been missing when Sam ran into him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega’s mouth was bone dry.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Any thoughts of escaping from the cursed bathroom left him completely; he couldn’t take his eyes off of it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was where the smell was emanating from. Whether it was because Bucky had used it to wipe off his own ejaculant after he came, or simply because it had been drenched in his scent from his time wearing it, it was why the odor hadn’t diminished. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s hand twitched.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He needed it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega took a tentative step forward, and a screeching step back.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What the ever loving fuck are you doing, Wilson,” he chastised himself as some resemblance of sense came back to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hadn’t he put himself through all of this bullshit, to prove a point to Bucky? To himself? Bucky could posture, and growl, and snarl, and play into every one of Sam’s weaknesses, but Sam wouldn’t crumble. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bucky had beaten him this time, but the omega would never let it happen again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Resolutely, Sam marched his way to the exit of the shower room…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...and marched straight back the way he came.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He left with an extra shirt poking out of the zipper of his bag.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading, comments and kudos are always appreciated! Follow us on tumblr @Kca1516 for news about updates!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you to everyone who leaves comments and kudos and even if you just read in general! Depressions a bitch and leaves my creativity in shreds sometimes so that's why updates are slow, thanks for sticking around tho!</p><p>(as always more editing will come when all the ch's are out)</p><p>edited: 2/20/21</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Sam was not having a good day. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had driven back from the compound on autopilot. A daze had clouded around his brain, making his movements sluggish and delayed, though he knew he was moving just fine. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Even stashed away deep in his gym bag, Bucky’s scent seeped through its weathered fabric until a film had settled as a second layer along the car’s interior. Sam couldn’t escape Bucky’s scent if he wanted to.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>If pulled over now, he’d be charged with drunk driving though not a beer had passed his lips. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wasn’t oblivious, he knew he was as intoxicated as one could get, but he wasn’t in any danger either. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Though the omega quivered and buzzed with each deep inhale, each breath was accompanied by a sharp clarity he hadn’t felt in a long time. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He could only describe it like he was finally awake after sleeping through his entire life. Bucky was looking out for him now, protecting him now, and suddenly every story he had heard about alphas and omegas wasn’t just a fairytale. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Later, Sam wouldn’t be able to remember parking his car, or the ten minutes it had taken to convince himself to get out of it. His memory only began to come back as he all but floated into his apartment, anticipating the moment he could take out the contraband he had hoarded away and stick his face in it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam opened his door, his keys clanking against the bowl he set them down in, gently he lowered his bag to the ground so as not to damage what lay inside of it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Henreached a curious hand towards the zipper. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The rumble of his stomach interrupted him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam paused. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That’s right, hadn’t he had a plan? Wasn’t he supposed to pick up food? The omega glanced at the gym bag longingly, but knew he had to take care of himself first before he indulged. It’s what his alpha would want him to do.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam stood back up, not willing to let the bag out of his sight as he rustled around in his pockets to pluck out his phone. Running on autopilot, he unlocked the Stark phone Tony had given him. Tony who already had an alpha, Tony who would have no interest in Sam’s alpha, Tony who was making jealousy unfurl in Sam’s gut despite it all.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had half a mind to throw the phone at the wall in order to get any trace of another omega out of his home and away from what was his. Then again he couldn’t order food without a phone, and his rumbling stomach put up more of a fight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Grumbling, Sam dialed the number for his favorite pizza place. The phone rang three times, a man picked up. The practiced mantra of a tired food worker mumbled through the speaker. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The phone slipped through Sam’s fingers, and tumbled against the entryway doormat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>What the fuck was he doing.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A garbled voice continued to crackle from the ground, wondering if anyone was there. Sam didn’t have the presence of mind to hang up. His horrified gaze was already locked on the seemingly inconspicuous gym bag at his feet. The zipper was half way undone revealing the tops of his shoes, his own sweaty, dirty clothes, and a shirt that was irrefutably not his.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to kill him,” Sam said to himself, abject humiliation was unavoidable as the realization of what he had done fully sunk in. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky and him pressed together in the gym, the following shower he had taken out of spite that he now realized had been his own downfall, the high that had overcome him in the car when he had been locked in with no escape from Bucky’s scent. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was only in his apartment, where his own scent overpowered everything, that he had been able to collect himself. He had to remember that he didn’t want Bucky Barnes. He didn’t even like him! </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was hoping if he reiterated it enough times it would jog his memory, but lust and contentedness continued to sprout and bloom within him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Panic seemed to be the only balm, causing those seedlings to wither and die. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In lue of his shock, Sam stumbled backwards. He tripped over the lip of a rug, and knocked over a chair. Barely stopping himself from falling over, Sam hastily reached under his kitchen table, pulling a fully loaded gun from its resting place, and locked aim on his bag. When nothing immediately jumped out at him, he took hasty steps away from the duffel until he banged into the walk behind him, a picture falling from its hanger.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why does this always happen to me,” Sam growled, as he ultimately fell to the floor anyway.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Still, he was unable to tear his gaze away from the piece of gray cotton that stuck out from the bag.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He ignored the ever present tinge of smoke and blueberries that tickled his nose.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Redwing, report.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The tiny robot whirred to life where it had been covered by a pile of dirty laundry that had toppled over. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The thing chirped in greeting. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam hated that he took comfort in the sound.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The red and silver A.I glinted as it zoomed through the air, performing a flip before stilling.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Showoff,” Sam mumbled, fond despite his exasperation.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Redwing did the equivalent of sticking his tongue out before going quiet as to await orders. Sam rolled his eyes, but didn’t bother with the interaction further. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Redwing, scan Bucky’s shirt for explosives,” Sam ordered, his voice gruff as if to hide the ridiculousness of the request.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It didn’t seem so ridiculous when Sam explained his reasoning. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega decided Bucky must have orchestrated the entire ordeal, beyond the obvious, and Sam had fallen for his play perfectly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It had begun all the way back when Bucky had inlaid his scent into the gym while Sam and Steve had been sparring. Harmless at first glance, but it was common knowledge that prolonged exposure to an alpha’s raw scent could make an intended omega more susceptible to their advances...kind of...not </span>
  <em>
    <span>exactly</span>
  </em>
  <span>...well only if the alpha and omega were an intended pair...which Sam and Bucky were </span>
  <em>
    <span>clearly</span>
  </em>
  <span> not...and only if the omega allowed themselves to be susceptible to the scent…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam decided it was still suspicious on Bucky’s part.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha’s nefarious plan had amped up when they had quite literally run into each other. Bucky had lathered his stench all over Sam then, subtly getting the omega used to it through exposure so when Sam entered the shower it would hit twice as hard. Bucky had totally left his shirt in the showers on purpose, knowing Sam would be helpless to resist taking it home with him when it smelled...when it smelled</span>
  <em>
    <span> like that. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha had played into the omega’s weaknesses. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam cursed the alpha, hoping he could feel his wrath from all the way back at the compound. Sam would be sure to pay Bucky back ten fold; the alpha had no idea what he had started, but for now Sam had to focus on surviving the night without getting blown up. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>No doubt this was how Bucky planned to take him out. The only logical explanation for getting Sam to take his shirt home was if it was infused with some sort of miniature bomb he must have stolen from Bruce or Tony. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Alarm hitched a ride on Sam’s breath. There was a possibility Sam’s house was about to be blown to high heaven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The soldier was about to push himself to a standing position to run away when Redwing popped up.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No danger detected,” Redwing’s electronic tone informed him.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam froze from where he was crouched to sprint should he have to. He narrowed his eyebrows suspiciously, though the pulsing tension to run had come to a halt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That can’t be right,” he said, “Redwing, scan again.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Three minutes went by, sweat beading on the omega’s forehead before Redwing popped back up from his investigation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No danger detected,” Red Wing said again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam could swear he heard the exasperation in the robot’s voice, but didn’t have the time to argue with the little beast as he repeated the order despite its answer.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In fact, Redwing came up with the same answer four more times before it stopped listening to Sam’s request. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega kept from hissing at the damned thing, and changed tactics instead. Bucky would have wanted him to get upset so he overlooked another obvious answer to Sam’s question. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Settling in for a long night, Sam promised himself that he wouldn't let Bucky win. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hours passed as hundreds of requests passed from his lips. He had Redwing check for poisons, unstable magic, curses, cameras, hidden mics, anything that could possibly be hidden within the layers of fabric. Everything he checked for came up empty, until he had to stop least Redwing started pointing its lasers at him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Okay, okay, I get it,” he said when his trusted companion berated him through blinking lights and whirring noises. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam let the thing rest before going back to the drawing board. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He trusted Redwing, nothing had escaped its detection skills before, he just didn’t trust the shirt. Even going near it was dangerous, and Sam relented that he wasn’t sleeping in bed tonight. But he couldn’t just leave either, not with the shirt still there. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For now, the corner of his room was his sanctuary. The gun in Sam’s grip had fallen lax as the threat of immediate danger lessened over time. He still had to figure out Bucky’s play. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The omega’s relentless concentration stuttered when a yawn caught him off guard. Sam turned his head to read the time on the stove and saw it was well on its way to midnight, and he had to wake up early tomorrow for training.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam cursed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Maybe this was Bucky’s nefarious deed, keeping him up so he was useless in tomorrow's training. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Redwing,” Sam said, the thing chirped angrily at being awoken from its sleep.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam had gotten used to the things attitude, but still held a confusion seeing as the robot didn’t need rest. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Put something over the shirt so it can’t watch me,” Sam said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega ignored Redwings final angry tweets, as if he had reached his wits end with Sam’s obsession, but the robot complied. Flying over the pile of laundry, Redwing plucked one of Sam’s shirts from the pile and threw it over Bucky’s own, smothering the thing with the omega’s scent. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam grinned vindictively, let's see what Bucky did with that.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Before the omega could even ask, the robot picked up a handful of blankets from the bed that Sam normally used to nest with. With his current situation, they seemed fitting.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Thank you,” he said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He knew he didn’t technically need to say thank you, but it sure as hell helped. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Redwing purred, pleased with the recognition, then hummed once before falling back into the laundry. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam felt like he had been scolded fondly by his mother. Yet, the omega curled up in his blankets, familiarity easing the tension riddled through his body as he settled in for a long night.</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>~~~~~~~~~~</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Even after Redwing had yelled at him to go to sleep, Sam had been restless all through the night. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He kept trying to monitor the shirt for suspicious activity, and never let sleep pull him fully under until the a.m. had rolled around. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Needless to say, as he had feared, Sam was late for work the next morning</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I know this ch is kind of short and not as fleshed out as I usually make chapters, that's because this was originally written as a oneshot with brief screenshots as a way to go from section to section. The next ch is more fleshed out and in detail and it maybe has some spicy moments in it but you didn't hear it from me ;)</p><p>Thanks for all the support!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I have read this over so often that the words have blurred and i have no idea if it makes any sense but as always once the enitre book is finished i go back and edit it all up with fresh eyes so it won't stay like this forever if it's a little all over the place (also happy holidays everyone this was supposed to be out on christmas but clealry it wasn't lol)</p><p>edited: 2/20/21</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Sam was awoken by a narrow beam of sunlight shooting straight for his eyes, and knew that the day would not be kind to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His neck twinged every time he turned his head too fast, his back was stiff and protested strenuous movement due to the angle he had kept himself in all night, and the bags under his eyes pulled down in lips of exhaustion. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Any lenient thoughts he had been having towards Bucky the night before had been crushed underfoot. There was no way the shirt ending up in Sam’s grasp was an accident.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky was out to get him, and he knew it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>On top of his phone’s blaring ringtone still vibrating in his ears, and the strain in his tight shoulders, Sam had to rush out of his house with the heel of his shoes barely secured on his feet. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>In his attempt to leave his apartment, the omega had forgotten his keys twice along with his bag once, and he was afraid to lift his arms in case the smell assaulted his friends and they kicked him off the team. That being said, with how late he was, they might as well. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Still, none of that took the title of worst thing that happened to Sam that morning, not even close. In Sam’s rush to not have Steve give him one of his famed, well intentioned lectures, the omega had grabbed at the clothes sitting at the top of his ‘dirty laundry’ pile while furiously scrubbing at his teeth. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was embarrassing, the entire situation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was an adult, but he felt like a kid who had missed the bus for the fifth day in a row and had to go confess to their parents.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t have the luxury of self pity as he threw on the first shirt he had gotten his hands on. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam didn’t realize that the shirt he put on had been smothering a certain grey henley from the night before. The one he purposefully had hidden so he didn’t have to face it in the morning.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Well, the morning was here and he had yet to realize the plight he had brought down upon himself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In fact, Sam didn’t even notice the problem until he got into his car. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There, the omega was once again reminded that he hated Bucky Barnes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha had infected his clothing.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After laying on top of the potent alpha scent all night, Sam’s shirt now smelled like Bucky.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Smoke and copper.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t strong enough that anyone besides Sam truly noticed it unless they got up into his personal space, but that was so low on Sam’s list of priorities right now it was laughable.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He turned a corner in the blaringly white hallway, almost slipping in his rush to get to the gym. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Forty-five minutes had gone by since he was supposed to have arrived. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He could already hear his friends chortling while he was ripped apart by Steve.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Not that Sam didn’t deserve it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck, </span>
  </em>
  <span>he was going to kill Bucky Barnes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t that Sam was afraid other people would notice Bucky’s scent clinging to him and suspect something as far from the truth as it could get, it was that Bucky’s scent, the scent he had tried to hard to detox from the night before, was now sturdily and inescapably wrapped around him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was breathing it in, suffocating on alpha pheromones that made his knees weak in the worst way.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was going out of his mind. Bucky’s scent was just enough of a tease that the omega’s mouth watered, and his dick lay half hard in his pants. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If anyone were to pick a fight with him as he was now, he had no doubt that he’d bear his neck in order to calm the situation down, an instinct he rarely ever gave into. But Sam insisted to himself that he wasn’t incapacitated enough that he was a complete slave to his wants and needs, his head was clear. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’d get the day's work done, and show up for his team when they needed him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Despite how he knew he couldn’t give into the distraction, want welled in his teeth. His canines throbbed with the need to bite down, and mark something as his own. The pain was intoxicating, and vicious, and he couldn’t remember longing for anything more.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Guilt spiked between the rhythm of his heartbeat, and he took his instinctual wants and shoved them down where he wouldn’t be tempted to take them out and caress them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam knew the torture wouldn’t end until he took the shirt off at the end of the day, nine hours from now. It was just his luck that being this late meant he didn’t have time to stop by his room in the tower and grab a new shirt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He just had to get to the gym.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everything would be fine as soon he got to the gym.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky was at the gym, and Sam was finding that he needed Bucky.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If Sam had actually admitted that to himself, he would have saved himself a lot of trouble.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega finally barged into the gym, the intrusion grabbing everyone’s attention as they stopped to stare at who had interrupted them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They had been partner sparring. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s limbs seemed to stop adhering to his brain's commands as he stood frozen with so many familiar, yet invasive, eyes falling on, and judging him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It all felt so wrong, and in his relapse he didn’t understand why. These people were his friends, why would they be passing such harsh criticism upon him? Why did he feel so jittery, and out of control?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam inhaled in order to center himself, forgetting that in the process that he was only succeeding in intoxicating himself that much more.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sam,” Steve called out.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha was relieved, as they had all been worried when Sam hadn’t shown up on time without any warning. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam flinched.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve noticed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Get back to it, everyone,” Steve said, “Tony join Bruce and Thor, you’re not getting out of this that easily.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve planted a kiss on the grumbling omega’s forehead before walking over to Sam who still seemed to be unmovable from his spot at the door. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As always, Steve greeted him with a warm, kind smile, but for once Sam found the alpha’s gentleness, with his mate, the team, and Sam, grated against his nerves.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Again, that sense of inherent wrongness washed over him, reminding him that Sam was ignoring the real problem here. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was putting a bandaid over a bullet hole.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam's skin was stretched tight over his bones, as he tried to find the tether inside that would help calm him. For the first time in years he was met with an empty abyss.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had thought he would be able to handle the day before him; he was finding himself woefully unprepared for it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam took in another breath, smoke and spice settled in the back of his throat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It began to click then, that as much as Bucky’s scent had sent him into this craze, it was also bringing him down from it, too.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He </span>
  <em>
    <span>really </span>
  </em>
  <span>hated Bucky Barnes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was called back to the blonde behemoth in front of him, Steve’s big blues were full of concern. As if he had been speaking to Sam for some time now, and had been met with nothing but silence in return.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sam, talk to me. Are you okay? It’s not like you to be late,” Steve said, voicing his mounting worry. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was snapped back to the present like a rubber band who’s tension had finally been released. The murk he had been swimming through since he had gotten to the compound that morning disappearing of its own volition. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam couldn’t help but be a little pissed at that, the selfish thing. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nonetheless, his panic eased as if it hadn’t been chewing him up from the inside out only moments ago. The people around him, his friends he reminded himself, took back up their orders as if they hadn’t been watching him to begin with. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His omega, that had been throwing a fit due to the elusiveness of a scent that sat on the cusp of his grasp, purred contentedly as it curled up inside of him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The one change that Sam didn’t appreciate was the sudden increase of a variable that was as unpredictable as they come. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam became cloaked in the fullness of smoke and whiskey. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What’s wrong?” The growl of a voice tingled all the way down Sam’s spine. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky Barnes had established himself behind Steve. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>All the urges, that Sam was usually able to suppress, hit him full force. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was lost in the way Bucky’s dark strands of hair were pulled up into a top knot, save for a few stray tresses that hung in the front of slitted grey eyes that were pinned on Sam. A sticky shirt clung to the alpha, outlining every detail it was designed to hide, for Sam’s viewing pleasure. Sweat marred him from the training he had accomplished in Sam’s absence, but it was the bulk of the man’s arms that drew Sam’s gaze. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega was forcibly reminded of their interaction the day before, and felt heat creep up the back of his neck. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Phantom arms gripped onto his waist, anchoring him and challenging him all at once. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam drew his attention away from Bucky as Steve spoke back up, but Bucky’s gaze never left Sam.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That’s what I’m trying to figure out, Bucky,” Steve said, eyeing the pair warrily. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He knew that civility between Sam and Bucky was never a guarantee, and couldn’t help but anticipate the eventual foil. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Maybe you should leave, Bucky,” Steve continued, trying to de-escalate the situation before it began, but his order fell on deaf ears. In fact, Bucky seemed to be ignoring Steve entirely.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam had never seen the alpha like he was now, but soon found himself tunnel visioning the same.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wasn’t asking you, Stevie,” Bucky said, it was the first time Sam thought he had ever heard the alpha dismiss his friend like that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve seemed to know better than to be offended. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you okay,” Bucky addressed Sam again, though the omega could swear there was a sudden softness to his words. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam couldn’t find himself to fake atrocity, not when the warm voice washed over him so nicely. He hadn’t touched Sam, but the omega felt marked anyway.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” Sam breathed out, trying not to fidget.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t the entire truth, and he knew Bucky knew it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha’s mouth twitched into something like disappointment at the obvious lie. Sam’s omega really didn’t like that, but he wasn’t going to change his answer either. Bucky growled at the omega’s stubbornness. He clearly wanted to push the topic until Sam broke, Sam knew it wouldn’t take long should he try, but Bucky ended up holding his tongue. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The hair along Sam’s arms stood on edge. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky never held his tongue.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Well, Sam redacted that statement, Bucky never held his tongue unless he had something worse planned in mind. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha smirked, Sam’s stomach dropped. Finally breaking eye contact, Bucky looked to Steve who seemed terribly puzzled by the following occurrence, but didn’t want to walk away should it escalate. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m pairing up with The Falcon today,” Bucky informed them both.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was decidedly not a request.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s lips were glued shut while Steve’s jaw dropped. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was not one to keep quiet in the face of an injustice, it was a well known fact, yet the omega found his voice lost to him as the men in front of him decided his fate. Never before had he let something like this happen; he was always one to stand up for himself. But for better or for worse, words were lost to him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Trying to neutralize his surprise, Steve spoke up on Sam’s behalf, anticipating the omega’s lack of comfort. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Bucky, you don’t have the authority to make that decision,” Steve said, regaining some of his composure as pack alpha, “You remember what happened last time you two were paired up. Do you really think this is a good idea -”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam appreciated the gesture, but found himself wanting Steve to shut the hell up. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” Bucky cut him off. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If Sam had imagined the rest of the Avengers looking at him before, they sure were now. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky’s ringing insolence against his team leader was a weighted tremor throughout the gym. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Their friend’s confusion was tangible, but Sam didn’t care what they thought. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>No, all Sam could think about was pulling Bucky behind him in order to protect him from Steve’s possible retaliation. They all waited with baited breath as it seemed Steve was considering doing exactly that, until finally the rumbling in the alpha’s chest pulled back.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Relief was a drug.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve knew he didn’t understand whatever was happening to its fullest, and he wasn’t going to butt in until he knew he needed to. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Instead, Steve turned to Sam.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky grunted at being ignored, but kept it to himself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you okay with this?” Steve asked Sam. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam knew, if he said the word, Steve would have Bucky on the ground in an instant. Sam appreciated it, but the help was unneeded. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” Sam replied, knowing he was sure of his decision. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve was as shocked as he was.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” Steve gave in, “Okay. Well, Bucky, explain to him the drill we’re working on, and get to it...I guess.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve tried at normality despite the lingering tension between the three of them, and warily backed away as if Bucky and Sam were about to burst out laughing and tell him it was all a prank.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But Steve finally turned away, and Sam lost his only means of help.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega was suddenly alone with Bucky as if there were no other people around them. All two-hundred and sixty, attractive, pounds of him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ve got to say, sweetheart, I expected you to make that a lot harder on me then you did,” Bucky said, a smirk building on his lips. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was relieved to find he had the urge to punch it off.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you all for reading and being excited about each new chapter that comes up, I am excited about the next ch cause it does get a little spicy in a few different ways if you know what I mean *wink wink nudge nudge* not that much tho not yet at least</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Look this is crap I know it is (in so many ways lol) this entire book was rlly just for fun its not written great or anything it was just for the hell of it so its not gonna be perfect rn when all the parts are out im gonna go back and edit it all over again and connect it better but for right now you're gonna take my trash and you're gonna like it or you can leave</p><p>edited: 2/21/21</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Sam’s back spasmed as he greeted the floor for the fourth time in as many minutes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Four, zero,” Bucky said, voice rough and heavy in Sam’s ear. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The exercise was supposed to be simple. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky had herded Sam to a mat, hand splayed possessively on his lower back, and explained the simplicity of the day’s training. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pin your opponent to the mat before they could retaliate. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Normal, fine.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was used to this; he was </span>
  <em>
    <span>good </span>
  </em>
  <span>at this. But even with his head cleared, a semblance of his righteous anger back in place, the omega had barely gotten a leg up before he was pinned down on their first go around. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As much as he was holding onto the facade that everything was fine, his inattentiveness ratted him out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky was holding him down, the alpha’s hot breath splayed itself along Sam’s ear, teasing him with promises of pleasure he would never receive. The omega shivered against the all encompassing hands pinning his wrists above his head, and the powerful thighs bracketing his hips. Normally Sam would buck up, an attempt to throw Bucky off of him, but to do so now would lead to some unexpected consequences. Sam was still, admitting defeat in order to save the scraps of his dignity. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Thanks for the reminder,” Sam wheezed out as he forced his ribs to expand. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The snark fell flat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam couldn’t bring himself to meet Bucky’s gaze. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everytime they made eye contact, the omega was reminded of the contraband stashed away in his house. Lucky for him, with how Bucky had rubbed himself all over Sam at this point, the alpha wouldn’t question the transfer of his scent on the omega’s shirt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sometimes you really do need to be knocked on your ass,” Bucky snarked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam couldn't find it in him to bother with a response. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>This Bucky couldn’t help but pick up on. His grip on the omega had gone lax when Sam had admitted defeat, but once again the hold tightened, a grab at the omega’s attention.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re a lot of things Wilson, but you’re not a liar,” Bucky said, “Cleary something’s up. I’m not Steve, I’m not going to let it go so we might as well skip the foreplay and get to the main event. You’re not winning this one, tell me what’s wrong.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky scent crackled with fresh smoke and electricity. Warning bells blared in Sam’s ears at the alpha’s intensity. It was then that Sam couldn’t take it a second more of whatever game Bucky was playing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The run in at the gym, the fucking shirt, the actively wanting to be his sparring partner, the way it was all living in his head entirely </span>
  <em>
    <span>rent free</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega’s brain screamed at him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Clearly, Bucky was trying to lull Sam into a false sense of security before pouncing, metaphorically and physically. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When had the alpha ever asked him how he was doing before? The alpha had to be messing with him, and Sam didn’t know why. One thing he did know, however, was that he wasn’t going to lay down and take it a moment longer. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Catching the alpha unawares, Sam planted his feet on the ground and thrust his pelvis up with all his strength. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha went flying off him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Nice one, Sam,” Steve called from across the room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam sent his friend a dirty look, and the alpha shut his mouth. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega ignored the groans and cursing coming from Bucky, and got to his feet before the alpha could retaliate. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The omega brushed himself off, hating how the remnants of Barnes’s hands still made his skin bruise pleasantly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wanted to scream. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wanted to rage.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>hell</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he wanted Bucky Barnes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam stalked out of the gym, not caring that training wasn’t over or that he left his bag and keys inside, he just needed to get away for a little bit and clear his head. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had promised himself that he wouldn’t let anyone in after Riley, and had already failed miserably. Sam hadn’t been able to keep away the pack, but he would be damned if he didn’t keep away Bucky.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>No one stopped him as he left the gym, though he knew they were all watching him go. He didn’t care, if they wanted to know what was going on they were going to have to wait until he figured it out for himself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam let out a huff of frustration as he finally escaped their prying eyes in the sterile hallway. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Relief blocked out the almost inaudible footsteps of his sparring partner until it was too late. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A hand came down on his shoulder, and Sam didn’t have time to brace before he was slammed into the wall.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The furious huffing of Bucky Barnes reminded Sam of an angry bull, with Sam being the red cape. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What the hell was that,” Bucky growled. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam rolled his eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Was your fragile ego that bruised that I was able to upend you so easily?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s body was completely indisposed by Bucky’s own. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Should the fight get physical, he was at a disadvantage. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam didn’t care. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had been wanting to pick a fight, any kind of fight, with Bucky Barnes for twenty-four hours now. As long as it was an excuse to run from whatever had been building inside of him, he would take it without complaint.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That’s not what I meant and you know it,” Bucky said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Admittingly, that was not what Sam had expected to come out of his mouth. Bucky seemed to notice, and took advantage of the omega’s silence. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re distracted and distant. Something’s wrong, so fucking tell me so we can move on with our lives.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s surprise didn’t last long at all. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In the wake of Bucky’s annoyance, the omega regained his voice.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Even if something was wrong, which I’m not admitting to, what makes you think I’d tell you ?” Sam snapped, his frustration pouring from him in one fell swoop.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You are the bane of my existence, Barnes. Is that what you wanted to hear? Did you want to hear about how I was up all night last night trying to figure out what game you’re playing? How you’re so close to winning? Is that what you want, you low life, selfish, bastard of a man who can’t look past his own knot. You’re an ass, Bucky Barnes. You’re infuriating and egotistical, and-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Omega</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Bucky growled, cutting him off. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s mouth snapped shut as the anger depleted despite how he wished it would stay. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It would make this so much easier. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At first, Sam’s gaze stayed stubbornly on the wall behind Bucky, refusing to give in. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky could stay mad about what he had said. Sam had said it for exactly that reason, even if the unexpected consequence of his words had begun to coat his tongue like tar. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He told himself the lies didn’t matter, not if it got Bucky off his trail.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d deal with the fallout later. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Look at me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam cringed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t want to give in. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t want to open himself up to another heartbreak by trusting the alpha, but Bucky’s soothing presence was a balm over his raw nerves as much as he tried to deny it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t want to give in, except that he did, he really did.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mustering up a scowl, Sam shifted his gaze to Bukcy’s expecting anger, hatred, disgust. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The things that Sam had put there despite how they would break him to see it. Instead he was met with the man’s warm grin, and the ever present twinkle in his eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“There you are,” Bucky said, kindly, “I was wondering where you’d gone.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s breath hitched</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Something irreparable broke inside of him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The world had turned on its head. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam had berated and cussed at the alpha until the man should have been blind with anger. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Instead, </span>
  <em>
    <span>instead</span>
  </em>
  <span>, the alpha was welcoming him back as if to a home. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A lump formed in Sam’s throat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What?” he stuttered out.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re not as slick as you think you are,” Bucky said, “I’ve let you get away with it, pushing me away, starting all the fights. You find comfort in it, and I won’t deny it’s fun getting you all worked up. I was prepared to wait it out until you felt comfortable with me, but then I kind of made a fool of myself yesterday, and you came in this morning acting all sorts of weird. I still expect you to tell me what’s wrong, but it was good to hear again just now. The you I’ve become accustomed to.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s mouth slackened, inhaling smoke and mist. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was admittingly confused. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had thrown everything at Bucky. He had pulled out all of his tricks, done everything to get the man off his track. But there Bucky stood, pinning Sam down like it was his right and smug as all hell about it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He had played Sam perfectly, and all of the overwhelming truths Sam was keeping locked away grew too strong to hold back. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam couldn’t deny it anymore, he didn’t want to.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alpha,” he finally breathed out.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was giving in, if only for a moment. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was tired of having to hold himself up, when he had always had Bucky’s awaiting arms to fall into. Bucky immediately took note of the sudden change, and gladly became what Sam needed him to be. The alpha took Sam in his hold, cradling him to his chest. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Talk to me, Samuel,” Bucky said again, softer. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His metal arm now cupped the omega’s lower back, pulling him against the alpha in order to calm him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam was horrified to find himself letting out small whimpers in turn. A hand of warmth and strength cupped his cheek, thumb rubbing against his skin to soothe him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re afraid,” Bucky said, gathering the subtle hints Sam had been putting out to the world from the moment he met the man.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m afraid,” Sam relented, repeating what Bucky had already put together. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was the first time Sam had been able to put an emotion to what he was feeling, but it encompassed the truth of the situation so well it hurt. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam’s mounting feelings for Bucky were coming to a head. Here, wrapped up in the alpha, it scared the crap out of him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sweetheart,” Bucky cooed, making the mistake in thinking he had moved past Sam’s defences. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega’s eyes popped open like that of a spooked animal. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He pushed against Bucky’s chest with the same force he had used to upend him earlier, fleeing a safe distance away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The omega panted as if he had just run a marathon, shoulders hunched in on himself as if trying to hide the wound he had already uncovered. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A pang of sadness rippled in Sam’s soft tissue as he watched the alpha regain his footing. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky steadied himself easily enough, but he had been thrown for a loop.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sam,” Bucky said cautiously, though he knew better to move closer to the omega. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam flinched anyway, with the intimate call of his name, how could he not? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Leave me alone,” Sam lashed out, all but tripping over his own two feet as he backed away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sweetheart, please-” Bucky tried, but it was cut off with the same ferocity with which Sam had pointed at Steve earlier.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No!” Sam demanded, though he didn’t even know what he was truly protesting, “leave me alone, Barnes. Please.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And maybe that’s what did it, Sam’s plea. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For the first time since they had met, Sam was begging to be left alone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky wasn’t cruel, especially not when it came to his omega. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” Bucky said, stepping back, defeat heavy and tangible. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam hated it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega snarled, angry with his own idiocy and the conflicting interests that led him there. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam turned and ran, hating more than ever that it was no longer just his shirt that smelled like Bucky Barnes, but his entire being.</span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading my shitty brain rot</p><p>You can find us on tumblr @kca1516 for more content</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you to everyone who commented on the last chapter, you all were lovely and kind and I truly appreciate it. </p><p>In order to get new projects started I am going to be working on getting all of these chapters out in the next few days hopefully. This ch is more of a filler then anything, but the next ones get jucier.</p><p>As per usual editing is iffy bc I did it in like an hour, more editing will come after all the ch's are out.</p><p>(I forgot to add a song last ch so this ch's song is Everything I Did to Get to You by Ben Platt, normally I associate it with Stony but I listened to it on repeate while editing and thought it fit)</p><p>edited: 2/21/21</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Sam didn’t end up leaving the tower for the next two days despite how he longed to go back to the safety and privacy of his own home.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His friend’s kept coming in and out of his room, checking to see if he was okay after the past morning's oddities. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve had even given him a few days off from training. He hadn’t known what was wrong, but he knew Sam needed his space.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>It was nice that they cared, and Sam appreciated it, but he wished they would leave him alone just this once. The door would creak open and anxiety would jump in his throat, expecting Bucky to emerge from the hallway. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wasn’t ready to talk to the alpha, and he didn’t know if he ever would be or if he would get the opportunity to again. There was a chance he had closed the door for good this time.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He also knew that was wishful thinking.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Being able to run from this would be the easy option, facing it was what he didn’t know if he’d be able to do. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Talking to Bucky might finally break him into a million pieces that he wouldn’t be strong enough to glue back together.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam didn’t want that, not again, yet he still found himself anticipating the alpha’s dreaded appearance. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>An itch he could never scratch. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But after almost two days of waiting, Sam admitted he was wasting his time on someone who was never going to show. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The only reason the omega had avoided going back to the gym to gather his things and go home was because he had been worried Bucky would be waiting to ambush him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam swallowed his disappointment in knowing that wouldn’t be the case. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>On the morning of his second day at the tower, Sam had snuck down before training had even begun, and grabbed his belongings. It was still dark out as he slipped out of the compound. A convict escaping from underneath the prison guard’s nose, but no one came out to drag him back as he started his car.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam blocked out the beginnings of guilt that were started to seep into his thoughts, and cringed as he began the drive. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>What he had yelled at Bucky was a pounding in his head. He knew that how he had acted wasn’t rational, or fair. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam had grown so used to having the people he cared about taken from him, something the omega had come to adopt a long time ago. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Deep down he wanted to let Bucky in, he wanted to see where their bond would take them, but he knew he couldn’t. When confronted so heavily with Bucky, and what the man meant to him, he panicked. He had lashed out in hopes of putting an end to the leap of faith Bucky had almost made him feel safe enough to take.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He hated Bucky Barnes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>What was worse was he knew that wasn’t the case at all.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When Sam pulled up to his house he had to stop himself from banging his head against the steering wheel so he didn’t wake any of his neighbors. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The omega got out of the car, not bothering to take anything with him except his phone in case there was an emergency.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He trudged up the stairs, the exhaustion in his body weighing him down. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He hadn’t slept at all in his bed at the compound, adding to his accumulating restless nights, and now all he wanted to do was collapse. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he opened his door, he knew he wouldn’t get the chance to any time soon. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was stopped cold in his tracks. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Where he expected the comfort of his own familiarity to ease him, he was met with smoke and sea salt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ingrained in every part of his house were strands of his own scent now entangled with Bucky’s. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam closed the door behind him, toeing further into the room carefully.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>In all that had happened since Sam was last in his apartment, he had almost forgotten. Wading through the mess he had left in his hurry to leave for training, he found the culprit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky’s shirt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam dropped to his knees.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The grey fabric was a crumpled heap on the ground, leaving its marks on the walls the same way it had left hints on his collar the day before. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Except now it was much more than a mere hint. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was everywhere, pressing against him, engulfing him, protecting him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Without conscious thought Sam grabbed the fabric, and couldn’t find it in himself to be ashamed as he shoved his nose in it the same way he had longed to do when Bucky had him pressed against the wall. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was becoming obsessed.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Inlaid in the notes of scent were the answers to Bucky’s thoughts. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Anger, arousal, possessiveness, need all laced in the fine seams of the shirt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam knew if he didn’t pull away from the clothing soon he would lose the game entirely, but deep down he already knew he had. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Where once the scent had made Sam go out of his mind, now it was familiar and began to elicit feelings in Sam he had spent so long running from.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Not bothering to suppress himself in the safety of his own apartment, Sam removed himself from the shirt only long enough to replace it with his own. When the soft cotton rested gently on Sam's touch starved skin, he shivered, moaning at the steadiness of it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Like this he could pretend Bucky was there, holding him, telling him all was okay and forgiven. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky wouldn’t be avoiding him. He’d be holding him, coaxing him into bed to cuddle. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As if following the alpha’s unspoken order, Sam found himself climbing into bed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Something settled inside of him; this felt right. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam had been wrong. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For the first time in two nights, sleep came easily to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>~~~~~~~~~</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Soon, Sam didn’t even question it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Walking in and out of his apartment, smelling so strongly of Bucky, became second nature. It wasn’t a shock. It was wanted, needed. Sam found himself spending more and more time at his home then at the compound, despite how he missed spending time with the pack. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t have much of a choice, the comfort Bucky's scent provided him was non-negotiable. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam ached for it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now that he’d had a taste, he craved more. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega was beginning to find that even the scent that greeted him at home wasn’t enough. Even as he wore Bucky’s shirt to bed every night, and bathed his own clothes in the shirt by rubbing them together, it was growing stale. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mixing their scents had disadvantages. He knew if he spread Bucky’s scent too thin it would disappear fast, and the omega meant to savor it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Later, he would be grateful for that inconvenience. It meant that no one at the compound could pick up the sudden meshing of alpha and omega on Sam. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But Sam was only ignoring the real problem, he knew his only choice was to mend his relationship with Bucky.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As much as the omega had convinced himself he could live off of Bucky’s scent, and Bucky’s scent alone, deep down he knew it was only a placeholder for the man it belonged to. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam had finally come to the conclusion that he wanted Bucky to be his. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wanted to be Bucky’s, but every time Sam made the attempt to approach Bucky, the alpha found a way to avoid him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Leave me alone. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had begged the man to leave him be, and the one time the alpha didn’t push his boundaries, Sam wanted him to. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was infuriating, and Sam soon found his stubborn streak making an appearance. If Bucky didn’t want to be around Sam or let him explain himself, then he wasn’t going to make the effort either. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bucky could go off and fall in love with someone else. An omega that would rub his feet, and cook him dinner, and give him a litter of pups, and was not Sam Wilson. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam didn’t care one bit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Even if the contents of his stomach curdled every time he thought about it, and he would rush to Bucky’s shirt to reassure himself the alpha wasn’t going anywhere. Like this, he could pretend that Bucky was with him, and cared, and wouldn’t hurt Sam that way.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Weeks went by with Sam only living off that one drenched Henley. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was his only connection to Bucky, and what had transpired between them, because too soon everything went back to normal. Sam went back to training, Steve never paired Sam and Bucky up again, and if they were ever to cross paths they would ignore each other.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That was the only difference. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Before, their encounters ended in fights that resulted in destroying half the compound, now there was only silence. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Their new normal.</span>
  <span></span>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam was back in control. As long as he had the shirt at home, he continued to bury his feelings for Bucky. As long as he had the shirt at home no one would know he was dying inside a little more every day as Bucky moved on with his life, and left Sam in the dust. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was exactly why Sam never let anyone in. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>This pain was inevitable, it was to his advantage that he hadn’t made it any worse for himself by trying to start something with the alpha.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega wasn’t okay, but he was regaining his footing in this upside down world.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wasn’t okay, but he would be.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then Bucky’s shirt lost his scent.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you all for reading! You can find us on tumblr @kca1516 for more content :)</p><p>(also someone comment something stupid for the 69th comment ;) bc i have the maturity of a twelve year old)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Just like Sam in this ch I am exhausted which makes this just readable enough to post</p><p>Thank you as always for all your support</p><p>the song for this ch is Killer by Phoebe Bridgers</p><p>as always more editing will come after all the ch's are out</p><p>edited: 2/21/21</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Sweat pooled beneath Sam, combining with a range of other fluids that had soaked through the sheets.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d change them if he could. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam Wilson had been trapped in his bed for four days, unable to sit up for long enough to help himself beyond that of food, a trip to the bathroom, or to procure his nesting supplies. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega collapsed from where he was shakily holding himself up on his forearms, coming down from an unsatisfying release. He didn’t have the energy to roll out of his own cum, instead  he sunk his face into Bucky’s cursed t-shirt and moaned at the loss that clanged deep inside of him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Four days ago, Sam’s body had been forced into a sudden pre-heat, one that was worse than anything he could have ever expected.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had never been one of the omegas that became fully incapacitated during the week before their heat, and this was nothing he had ever experienced before.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Sam was usually able to go about business like normal, and with minimal side effects that consisted only of random bouts of moodiness or swells of arousal that were hard to ignore but not impossible.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That being said, those moments were few and far between, it wasn’t until the actual week of his heat that he was primarily bed-ridden.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was like he had been placed in a different body. Something wasn’t right, and Sam couldn’t get past the sudden bursts of hollow grieving long enough to figure out what had gone so obviously wrong. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It had started when he was at the compound. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had been getting ready to go back home so he could curl up in Bucky’s scent, and pretend his fantasies were reality, when sweat began to dew on his forehead. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam hadn’t paid it much mind as he drove home. He walked up to his door easily enough while taking out his key, every day normal activities, but as soon as he had stepped into his apartment a wicked hiss of pain was pulled from him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam couldn’t ignore the facts anymore. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky’s scent had disappeared from his apartment, overpowered by the mellowness of his own scent. A thing he had come to dread. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was then that a sudden cramp had hit Sam, and he barely had the presence of mind to lock the door behind him before he was on his knees. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wasn’t proud to admit, but as he lay there gripping his stomach he began to release hiccuping sobs. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was obvious what was going on.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam knew enough about biology to know what was coming, but he had no failsafes set up to protect himself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He should have called his friends there and then, explaining the sudden problem, and that he already knew he would be out of comission for who knew how long as he waited for the full blown heat to hit him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If the pre-heat was this bad, there was no telling what the actual thing was going to look like. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But Sam’s higher brain functions couldn’t seem to piece themselves together long enough for the omega to help himself, the need to curl up in the middle of his bed undeniable as panic shot through him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The hitching of his breath grew until he couldn’t breath, unable to take in a full breath.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Something was wrong, something was so very wrong, and for the life of him he couldn't figure out what it was. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Despite not understanding why his heat had come so soon, or why his symptoms were worse then normal, he knew what was happening to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had been going through his heats his entire life, he knew his body and how to handle its reactions. That wasn’t the cause of the emotional spike that was running rampant throughout him. It was like someone had reached their hand into his chest and tore out his heart, leaving only an abyss of sloshing oil and ink. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was drowning in it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His omega was screaming at him, overriding any logic in order to send him into lockdown. It was ripping him apart. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam focused on calming down as his weary limbs pulled him onto his bed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His heart beat wildly in his chest as he forced himself to inhale steadily, salty tear tracks drying on his cheeks. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>As he collapsed on the mattress, he knew he would have stayed just like that for who knew how long except his body protested against the clothes scratching at his skin. The omega trembled as he stripped himself down to his boxers, the brush of fabric unbearable. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Why the hell was this happening to him? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Another buildup of uncontrollably grief was bound to hit him any second, and Sam gripped onto the one thing he knew was a surefire way to center himself. The omega reached out a quivering hand, and slid it along the cool sheets under his pillow. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The tips of his fingers landed on the worn t-shirt Sam had wrapped himself up in for weeks now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Not having the presence of mind beyond that of some relief, Sam pulled it out from its neatly folded form and shoved his face in it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Alpha</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The title sounded so desperate, but he didn’t have the luxury of caring, it was better than saying the name connected to it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Only Bucky could fix this problem. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam hated to admit it, but knew it was true nonetheless. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega nuzzled the shirt, focusing on the area that had the most contact with the concentrated smell of alpha. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The neckline, and the crease of the arms. They were the only two places that housed any memory of Bucky. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam inhaled like someone was forcing him to. The omega clenched his eyes shut and breathed, using each one of his senses to try and pick up all that was left of the alpha.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nothing.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That couldn’t be right. Sam had been so damn careful. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As soon as he realized Bucky’s scent was starting to fade Sam had used every training tactic he had ever learned in order to preserve it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Soldiers were forced to spend months away from their mates during tours, they had all picked up ways to keep the little pockets of their spouses scents with them so it lasted. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Of course, Sam had been lucky to never need to use those tactics.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Until he had.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Instead of sleeping with Bucky’s shirt every night, or rubbing it against his own clothes so he could have some of it with him all day, Sam hid it under his pillow so it wasn’t openly wafting. The omega had only let himself take brief inhales in the morning and night. It wasn’t easy to pry himself from the shirt, but he’d rather have a little bit of Bucky's scent then none at all. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam looked back on his first night with the shirt, when he hadn't yet realized the gift he had been given. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He remembered how he had questioned the meaning of the shirt, wondering if Bucky had done something in order to trick him into taking it. Now he didn’t even care if the ridiculousness of that notion was true. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even if it was, Sam would do it all again in exchange for the small release it provided, the soft high. The shirt made Sam feel safe, and cared for even when everything else was wild and out of his control. Sam needed the scent, had done everything to conserve it, but now in his moment of need it was rendered useless.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega remembered how he had sworn to himself he would never need a scent the way he had needed Riley’s after his lover had passed on. It had been the worst kind of hell when the alpha’s scent had started to fade for good, and there was nothing his comrades could do to help Sam as he was destroyed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega had promised himself after that to never put himself, or anyone else, through what he had experienced.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The unbearable withdrawal.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yet here he was, soaking Bucky’s shirt in his own tears, gripping to it like Bucky himself would suddenly spring out from inside. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Doomed to keep repeating the same mistakes until the day it killed him. </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>~~~~~~~~~~</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam was proud to say that for the next two days he was able to suppress his symptoms as much as his body allowed. Not that it helped much.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Instead of a flowing excess of feeling, he was numb, depressed, a sack of potatoes on a mattress. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>His energy was so depleted that getting out of bed was a chore, and though he knew he really needed to at least call Steve to inform him why he was suddenly not coming into training, the thought of talking to anyone was too exhausting. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He just wanted to sleep, and eventually he turned off his phone without looking at any notifications when the constant buzzing of his concerned friends became too much to entertain. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam knew his preheat had thrown him into a depressive episode, but he couldn’t do anything to counteract the effects. The gaping hole in his sternum no longer pained him, but he soon came to find that was so much worse. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>In these two days he had gathered his blankets and clothes, and anything that had the barest touch of Bucky on it, though Sam knew he was just fooling himself at that point. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nothing brought him an ounce of comfort, and despite being drained, his nights were restless. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The fourth day of his preheat was the worst.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Random bursts of arousal began to immobilize the omega as the most painful cycle of his life crept up on him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>One would think Sam would prefer those moments, as it distracted him from the horrible sadness he couldn’t shake, but nothing about these symptoms were what he considered better. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Every time Sam wrapped a hand around himself, not bothering to soothe the emptiness inside as he didn’t have the energy, he moaned and whimpered and came with a shout of Bucky’s name.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Every damned time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega couldn’t control himself, the name fell from his lips in a desperate cry as if the alpha could hear him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Those sessions would end with him begging for the alpha desperately, lost to his instincts for a solid fifteen minutes after he had finished himself off, and not understanding why the man wasn’t there besides him. The worst was remembering that, not only was Bucky not coming, but he had resolutely removed Sam from his life. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That pain morphed to anger quickly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fuck Bucky Barnes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The man had dug under his skin, forced to the surface feelings Sam had happily left buried, and pushed and plucked and played him until he was puddy in Bucky’s hand. Bucky had plied him open, only to leave him wanton and unable to return to normality when he decided he was done with him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was an old kind of hell. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s skin was on fire, his body tense and unable to relax as he longed for someone who had abandoned him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He hated Bucky Barnes…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Except he </span>
  <em>
    <span>didn’t </span>
  </em>
  <span>hate Bucky Barnes, in fact he was pretty sure he was in love with Bucky Barnes, and it was more than he could bear. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>James</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Sam moaned as he came down from his high, sick to his stomach with Bucky’s name still dying on his lips. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tears pressed at his eyes for the first time since day one of his pre-heat, but he had enough sense to hold them back.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If he gave into it, it would never stop.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With the trajectory he was on, the omega’s heat would probably hit the next morning. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t know how long that gave him as time had lost all meaning, still he knew he had to prepare as this would be one of the hardest things his body would ever physically put him through. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam closed his eyes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had half a mind to finally pick up his phone, and send out a quick text to one of his approved heat partners he had stopped calling on long ago.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bile rose in his throat at the thought, and he knew that would not be a viable option. The plastic touch of another alpha’s hands made him physically ill. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t who his body needed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alpha…” Sam croaked out, as if he was just in the other room. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That past weekend Sam had finally washed the pile of clothes on the floor, and dusted the furniture. He had been mindful of how much the stagnant chemicals diluted the air, but had managed to clean up nicely as if he had been expecting company. The omega now saw that unconsciously, he had been expecting company. A guest that would never show no matter how he wished otherwise. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was a fools task</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam Wilson was in love with Bucky Barnes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam Wilson was in love with Bucky Barnes, and just as he had always known, it wasn’t enough. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He</span>
  </em>
  <span> wasn’t enough.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega knew that after this heat he would have to pry every part of himself from the alpha. He wouldn't let himself steal his clothes, or press himself up against his chest, or even see him as it would start the process all over again. He would move on; he had to if he ever hoped of living happily again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He would have quit the Avengers.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam whined pitifully.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t have it in him to think that far down the line yet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For now, the omega held onto the fantasy piling in his head to help him survive the next five to seven days. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He closed his eyes, praying the fatigue in every inch of his body would finally lull him into a sleep.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Soon enough this would all be over, and Sam would never let anyone near his heart ever again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then there came a knock at the door. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>this is random but after the past few days of posting i feel like i can say this, i am utterly shocked that ppl respond to the begining A/N i post like i totally think no one reads those bc i don't ever rlly read those on other ppl's stories so when i get a comment pertaining to shit i put in the A/N i am always surprised lol</p><p>Anyway im gonna go sleep, do with all of my brain rot as you will, thank you all for being lovely &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>The end is here!</p><p>Thank you to everyone who stuck with this story, it's been fun to interact with you all!</p><p>I edited this until my eyes blurred so its mediocre, as I promises though now that all the ch's are out I will be going back and editing for real starting tomorrow </p><p>The song for this ch (which i didn't realize i hadn't been doing songs for this fic until yesterday but whatever) is called Tonight by Sugarland. This song is the fics offical song I was always planning to save to the end to share. Its lowkey a country song and its just a weird fit but its what got me through writing this and oddly enough it works especially for this entire end thing here so have fun with that.</p><p>edited: 2/21/21</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It wasn’t a knock, the word was too calm to be accurate. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>No, someone was pounding on Sam’s door. Rattling the locked block of wood so hard the hinges shook as the person on the other side was close to splintering apart.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam shouldn’t have been as surprised as he was. He hadn’t been answering his phone after all, and he had been missing meetings and training. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was probably Steve coming to get his ass out of bed, unaware of what he was about to walk in on. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The pounding continued, somehow harder this time until Sam knew if he let it continue he’d be charging his friend to fix his door. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Using the last dregs of his energy, Sam sat up in bed, wrapping his bathrobe around his exposed form. He’d have to let Steve in, or at the very least assure him everything was fine, though it was the furthest thing from the truth.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega braced himself on the mattress as he tried to get his legs to cooperate, and stand him up. He wasn’t even on his feet when a voice roared from outside.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sam Wilson you open this door right now do you hear me?” Bucky Barnes yelled.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam flopped back down to the bed, frozen.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Open this damn door, Wilson, I know you’re in there,” Bucky continued.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam could picture it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His neighbors peeking out of their windows to see a giant, angry alpha banging on his door, all but feral. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For the first time in four days Sam felt the most himself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wanted to be petty. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wanted to turn Bucky away. He wanted to make the damn alpha suffer out there until somebody walking by called the authorities on him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It would serve him right. He could see the headlines now, the unstable Avenger trying to break into a poor omega’s apartment. Let it tear down the reputation Bucky had worked so hard to build for himself so people would see him as a person and not a monster.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Only problem was Bucky wasn't a person, he was an asshole and Sam wanted the world to know it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why should I?” Sam snarled, not needing to talk any louder knowing Bucky’s freaky super soldier senses would pick it up. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He hated that his voice was raspy and broken from screaming himself hoarse.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The knocking stopped, a brief reprieve from the perpetual banging. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam could only imagine what the alpha was doing. Rolling his eyes, regretting coming in the first place, processing his own pompous shock that Sam dared talk back to him?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If only he knew that Bucky had all but collapsed in his relief when he finally heard Sam’s voice for the first time in days, forehead pressed to the door in an effort to get closer to the omega he was hopelessly lost on. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was waiting impatiently for the man’s response. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Regaining some semblance of control, Sam picked his way to the door. He pressed the palms of his hands to the grainy wood, his chest brushing against the obstacle in an instinctual effort to get closer to the alpha. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>If he could just get close enough then maybe he could hear the rhythm of Bucky’s beating heart, and maybe that would be enough. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He couldn’t let him in, he wouldn’t do that to himself.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know you’re there, behind the door,” Bucky said quieter this time, though his voice held a power that made Sam shiver, “I don’t know how I know, but I just do. I can hear your heart beating. I don’t know if that’s normal, but I’ve always been able to.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s heart skipped a beat, and he cursed himself for it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega slapped a hand over his mouth. If he stopped breathing then his heart would stop pounding, and Bucky would leave like Sam knew he eventually would. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But the alpha had had enough of Sam’s self sabotaging tendencies, and he wasn’t going to let the man kill himself because of his ego.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The softness in his tone changed back to that of a command. An alpha that didn’t demand others to listen or respect him, but knew they would because he had earned the right.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If you don’t open this door in the next ten seconds I will break it down.”</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>~~~~~~~~~~</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam wished he could say he thought about going against the command, make Bucky sweat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wished he could say he snarked back at the man for taking that tone with him when Bucky hadn’t bothered to even look at him in weeks. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>As it was, Sam had been desperate to hear Bucky’s voice for days now, and didn’t have it in him to ignore the command even if he wanted to. Even if opening the door meant opening himself up to the inevitable pain it would bring. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Taking a steadying breath, Sam finally revealed himself to the man outside, and had to actively stop himself from letting out a moan as soon as he did.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky stood in all his blazing glory.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha’s shirt was rumpled from his leather riding jacket that was hastily thrown over it. His sweatpants hung like sin on his hips, a hint of skin sticking out from where the two layers disjointed. He looked like he had just rolled out of bed, like he had been tossing and turning, sensing that his omega was in trouble-</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam stopped that line of thought right then in there. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky’s hair was a mess on top of his head like he had been running his fingers through it anxiously. His chin was stubbled with a three o’clock shadow, it was the closest Sam had ever seen him with a beard, and his arms were braced out in front of him on the door frame as if to cage Sam in. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If Sam didn’t know better he would have assumed the alpha expected him to drop to his knees and beg, the omega couldn’t say he was opposed to the idea. He had needed this man for days, wanted him for longer. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>But it was the infuriated spark in Bucky’s darkened eyes that brought their sudden meeting to a head, and Sam wasn’t one to forget his own anger. With how Bucky was asserting himself like Sam owed him something, the omega’s own spark bloomed close to the surface.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are we really going to do this here, or are you going to invite me in?” Bucky clipped, “I’m sure your neighbors already think I’m crazy.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam quirked an eyebrow. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had half a mind to leave Bucky at the door, the same way Bucky had left his heart a shattered mess. But he didn’t really want to hear his neighbors complaints anymore then Bucky did, begrudgingly Sam stepped aside to let the alpha in. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He discreetly held his breath as Bucky passed, knowing that if he got a whiff of the alpha now there was a good chance he’d rid himself of all clothes without a second thought.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Instead, Sam busied himself with closing and locking the door, knowing what it said as the bolt clicked definitively.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They were going to be there a while.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The cool of the doorknob left Sam’s hand as he finally couldn’t distract himself any longer without looking suspicious. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam turned to find Bucky examining a decorative bowl on his table. Sam had half a mind to knock the man’s hand away, but didn’t want to get close enough to the alpha to touch him.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If it also had to do with how objectively good Bucky Barnes looked in his home, no one had to know.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What are you doing here.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The cold words left Sam without his heart's consent. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky dropped his hand from the table as he was forced to confront the reason he had shown up at the omega’s doorstep.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But never let it be said that Bucky shied away from uncomfortable topics, the alpha fixated on Sam, breaking him in a way only he could.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What am I doing here?” Bucky repeated, disbelief written in his tone like he expected the answer to be obvious.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was surprised at the sharpness of the alpha’s tone, for once not knowing what he had done to deserve it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The false bravado the omega had been clinging to shattered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky took Sam’s silence as answer enough.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Fuck you, Wilson. You know damn well what I’m doing here.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam’s confusion must have shown because Bucky’s eyebrows furrowed when the omega didn’t jump to fight with him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I sent you about a thousand text messages, sound familiar?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That’s when it dawned on Sam. The escalating vibrations of his phone the other night that had led to him to turn it off. It hadn’t been multiple people collectively spamming him, but one.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam wrapped his arms around himself, but Bucky had always been able to read his tells.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Did you even look at them,” Bucky ground out, “or did you enjoy watching me lose my mind. Damnit, Wilson.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha laughed cruelly, the veins in his neck straining as he finally looked away from the omega.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I shouldn’t be surprised, when did you ever do anything but live to break my heart,” the alpha muttered, as if not expecting Sam to hear.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was like a fist had connected with the omega’s gut, grinding the knot in his stomach that much tighter. Shock reverberated through Sam. He was almost positive he had heard Bucky correctly. Bucky ran a hand through his hair for what must have been the millionth time before the fight finally left him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam didn’t like that at all. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You know what, nevermind,” Bucky said, “you’ve made it clear enough that you don’t want to see me. I stepped out of line. Sorry, Falcon, I’ll leave you be now.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky didn’t waste time. He didn’t even brush past Sam as he hurried to leave.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was so close to letting him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What did you just say to me?” Sam bit out.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The turn of the lock never sounded, as if Bucky had been purposefully toying a response out of him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam knew it wasn’t true, but hated the alpha all the more for it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you have any idea the hell you put me through,” Sam said, unable to even look at Bucky as he stood his ground.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The words spilled easier this way, words that had been bottled up for too long. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The shit you left me to deal with while you sat idly by and did nothing. I was drowning, and you want to sit here and play the victim? No, you don’t get to. Get your ass back in here, and tell me what's going on.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam found himself all but yelling as he let go, but Bucky had always been able to go toe to toe with the omega. Now was no different. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A cruel laugh sent a shiver down Sam’s spine. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was a laugh that didn’t sound like Bucky as much as it sounded like The Winter Soldier. The mindless killer he had once been. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam found he wanted both versions of the man all the same, and he hated himself a little bit more for it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why am I here?” Bucky said, a pain in his voice even Sam couldn’t deny, “I’m here because you went missing!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The vibrations from the floor rattled through Sam as Bucky drew closer to the omega. He didn’t flinch as Bucky came to a stop, towering behind him. The alpha didn’t reach out, but Sam felt the brand of phantom hands nonetheless. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You went missing, and it scared the crap out of me,'' Bucky continued, that ever present anger sending strikes of lightning zapping through the omega.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No one knew where you went. You missed training, you missed meals, it was obvious you weren’t even in the tower, and I begged Steve or someone to go looking for you because I knew you wouldn’t want to see me. Steve, as much as he means well, kept trying to convince me you were fine. That there was confirmation heat signatures saying you were in your apartment, and that maybe you just needed time. He didn’t get it. If it was Tony that was acting weird he would have been tearing the place apart, but it wasn’t his omega that had disappeared now was it.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The air seemed to have sucked itself out of Sam’s lungs.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I texted you, and called you, and begged you to come home, even if it meant I had to keep avoiding you. I just needed to know you were okay, and you wouldn’t even answer me. You didn’t answer </span>
  <em>
    <span>anyone</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and I wanted to burn the damn compound to the ground. I thought that if I gave you the space you needed, eventually we could have a conversation about this, but you blocked me out. You’ve never half-assed anything in your life, that includes removing me from it. But I couldn’t ignore the fact that you were gone, and if no one else was going to care, I was. Please don’t ask me not to.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam clenched his fists, angry, hot tears streamed silently down his face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Omega…” Bucky called, scenting his sadness and confusion now that they were so close.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam turned around and pushed Bucky. He pressed the flat of his hands on Bucky’s chest and shoved him, damning it all when Bucky continued standing like a rock despite Sam’s best efforts.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You have no right to call me yours,” Sam could only whisper vehemently, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> left </span>
  <em>
    <span>me</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Your stupid shirt stopped smelling like you, and you weren’t even talking to me, and now you come here after all this time? You</span>
  <em>
    <span> left</span>
  </em>
  <span> me! One minute you were mine, and the next you were gone. I can’t do this, I can’t-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sobs were overtaking Sam, and he </span>
  <em>
    <span>didn’t know why.</span>
  </em>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was never one to cry or scream or beg or plead.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Something’s wrong,” Sam hiccuped, hating how he was losing it in front of the one person he never wanted to know he could, “Something's wrong with me, and I don’t know what. I’m-I’m going into heat, and I’ve been in so much pain, and this isn’t right. Something’s wrong-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hands cupped his cheeks and Sam wasn’t strong enough to push them away. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He hated this, he hated this so much. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega braced himself for Bucky to yell back at him like he always did, but a gentleness had overcome tha alpha, one Sam was familiar with. The effect was immediate. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A calmness washed over the omega, centering him so he relaxed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>So it was bearable.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What’s happening to me?” Sam asked, placing his own hands on top of Bucky’s to make sure he didn’t pull away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The pads of Bucky’s thumbs wiped away the wetness on Sam’s cheeks.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Look at me,” the alpha ordered, and Sam gave in to what he had been craving since he met the man. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He obeyed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam met Bucky’s gaze, finding only concern where he thought he would find anger. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sweetheart,” Bucky said, Sam relaxed, “I need you to answer some questions. I think I know what’s going on, but I need you to be honest with me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega could only nod, wanting to push himself further into Bucky’s grip, but didn’t know if the touch would be welcome.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sam, I’ve been in love with you for years now, and I never thought you returned an inkling of what I felt for you,” Bucky admitted, “This is important, did you only start having these feelings for me recently or was there something there before all this happened.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There was an ache in his words, the release of a burden he had been carrying for too long. Sam’s initial reaction was to lie, and say he didn’t have any feelings for Bucky at all, but at this point he had spilled his secrets enough that they both knew it would be a lie. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The truth felt awkward on his lips.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ve had feelings for you since the first day I met you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky exhaled.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But recently it’s been unmanageable. I haven’t been able to control it. When I’m around you it's like tiny explosions are happening under my skin all the time.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sturdy arms finally pulled Sam against a warm chest. The omega collapsed into the hold, sinking his face into the crook of Bucky’s chest, that intricate knot in his gut unfurling as Bucky crushed their bodies together. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Smoke, and vanilla. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam had been foolish to think he could live without this scent, prideful to think he could get over Bucky.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam belonged to the alpha, he couldn’t deny it any longer.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam Wilson loved Bucky Barnes, and for the first time he was beginning to think it would be enough.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky pressed a soft kiss to the top of his head.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So good for me, Samuel,” he murmured praise that made Sam’s brain turn to static, “You’re doing so good, sweetheart.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam rubbed at the man’s scent glands with his nose, eliciting a pleasured hiss, but they weren’t done talking, not yet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sam, you mentioned something about a shirt, my shirt. Can you tell me the story behind that? How it ended up with you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A hand ran up and down the length of Sam’s back despite the way he twitched. The wiring in his brain brought him to a sudden halt. That shirt was his now, it belonged to him. It was the shirt that was Bucky’s that had gotten Sam through so much already. He needed it. Bucky couldn’t have it back-</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m not going to take it,” Bucky assured, reading Sam’s distress, “Just tell me the story behind it.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For once, trusting that the alpha wasn’t lying to him, Sam let himself open up. The story flowed into the space between them, in all it’s ridiculous acclaim. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How Sam had found the shirt after he had ran into Bucky that one odd morning. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How the showers had been clogged with Bucky’s scent. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How that had opened the gates in Sam’s mind that held back the unbearable love he had for the man that he liked to pretend didn’t exist. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How he had taken the shirt home, and it had flourished in his apartment.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How when Bucky had cornered him for the second time, the reality of the situation had been too much to bear, and he had lashed out when he never really meant for Bucky to leave him alone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How he had used Bucky’s scent as a pseudo replacement for the man until the scent had started to dilute. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was the day that he came home, and the scent was gone completely that he had lost control, and had been stuck in between bouts of depression, and anger, and...Sam didn’t need to elaborate for Bucky to get the full picture. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pre-heat had assaulted the alpha’s nose as soon as he walked into the apartment, and it had taken an amazing amount of willpower for him to pretend it didn’t make him want to pin the omega to the nearest surface and have his way with him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When Sam finished his story, Bucky was swaying him gently.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I wish you had come to me sooner,” Bucky said, blunt as he usually was.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was pleased by the familiarity. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I could have helped you, you wouldn’t have had to go through any of that alone.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I thought I had finally chased you away,” Sam said, voice muffled in Bucky’s shirt, “I thought you hated me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky huffed out a laugh.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Or maybe you're just a self sabotaging idiot,” he replied fondly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam nipped at his skin. Bucky only laughed, and the rumbling sound sent a bolt of arousal to the omega’s core. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He cursed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t want to be aroused at a time like this, but his preheat was still boiling under the surface. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The time between symptoms was closing which meant he only had a few hours before it hit. Briefly, Sam gave way to worry that Bucky would leave him when he figured it out, but the alpha had already subtly started moving Sam towards his bed. In tune to him in a way only a mate could be. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll go if you want me to,” Bucky whispered into Sam’s ear as he sneakily hooked his hands underneath the omega’s knees and picked him up, “we can finish this all later.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was too drained to put up a protest as he was lifted. They both knew he liked it more then he was ever willing to say.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I don’t want you to,” Sam whispered. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha lay him down, eyeing the shirt he recognized as his own throne hazardously across the sheets. Sam took the moment to take in the man, how he hovered over the omega worryingly. He knew if he had told Bucky to get the hell out he would have, which was what made Sam so sure in his choice. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Good,” was Bucky’s only reply, but the happiness in his voice was unmistakable.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Another bolt of arousal shot down Sam's spine, like his body recognized the alpha’s proximity,  and was hurrying the process along before Bucky had the sense to take off running.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>This time Sam wasn’t able to hold back a whine as he hardened in his boxers, and slick gathered at his hole. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bucky’s nostrils flared as the sudden glaze caught his attention. The alpha removed his jacket and shoes as he climbed into bed besides the omega.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was immediately curled up into Bucky, but the alpha trapped him so that his back was to the man's front, and the alpha’s leg was inching closer to opening Sam’s legs.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If you want me to stop, I will. We go at your pace, always,” Bucky prefaced, his metal hand splaying along the omega’s chest possessively.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If I wanted you gone, I would have kicked you out a while ago,” Sam promised, but Bucky had officially taken charge.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A deep growl rumbled through the alpha’s chest and down Sam’s spine, teeth caught on his ear, pulling in warning.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That wasn’t an answer,” Bucky said, Sam’s breath hitched in his throat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His mind officially caught up with his body, recognizing that now was not the time to tease.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Please don’t stop,” Sam whimpered, lifting his leg so Bucky’s could slip fully between his thighs. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alpha didn’t need to ask again. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky went straight to work, stripping the omega of his bathrobe, one arm coming to pinch at Sam’s nipples while the other wasted no time skimming down Sam’s back to the top of his ass. The omega expected the alpha to rip the offending underwear off him, but Bucky was far from mindless. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Please,” he said, whining impatiently though he was still only in pre-heat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Want to know why you’re going into heat, omega? Why you’re more desperate than you’ve ever been?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam was only half paying attention as the thumb of Bucky’s hand prodded through his boxers to caress his hole, soaking the fabric in slick. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam keened out a reply.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The reason you feel so high strung and on edge is because you accidentally tricked your body into thinking we were already mated,” Bucky continued to stroke and tease, getting Sam to full hardness without even touching his dick. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now Sam was paying attention.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You constantly surrounded yourself with my scent, adding it to your house, your nest, the things you consider sacred and intimate. Your body got used to a part of me always being around. When we weren’t talking, you relied on my shirt.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alpha, please,” Sam cut in.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He realized what Bucky was saying made sense, but right now he didn’t care. Bucky granted him his request as he slid Sam’s boxers down his legs, exposing him to the open air. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bucky gripped Sam's ass once before sliding his fingers along the bare crack and into the wet, warm opening. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sam’s moan echoed through the room, if the neighbors complaint hadn’t been surefire before it was now. Bucky licked a stripe along Sam’s neck lewdly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“When my scent started to fade, your body thought your mate was leaving. It kick-started your heat to make sure I stayed,” Bucky slid a second finger alongside the first, pressing up against the bud inside Sam.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The omega threw his head back in a moan. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I plan to make sure, neither you nor your body ever makes the mistake that I’m leaving you again. I’ll admit that I was afraid the feelings you were having for me we're simply due to being surrounded by an alpha’s scent for so long. Any alpha’s scent could have caused this reaction.  But this,” Bucky curled his fingers and Sam wailed, “this is all for me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky pulled his fingers out, now dripping with slick. Sam was about to protest when Bucky wrapped his slickened hand around Sam's neglected cock. The omega jerked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you know how hard it was to see Stevie all over you on the training mats, touching something that didn’t belong to him. It drove me crazy every single time. You fighting back against him, fighting me when all I wanted was to pin you down. I remember the day you’re talking about, the day I snapped and </span>
  <em>
    <span>did something about it. </span>
  </em>
  <span>I’ll admit to being jealous, to going to the showers to try and calm down, which is where I left my cum stained-shirt. I remember running into you high off my own anger, and taking it out on you. I hadn’t meant for it to happen that way. I most certainly hadn't meant to kickstart all of this, or hurt you, but part of me can’t help but feel smug about it. If it got me you, I can’t find it in me to feel guilty.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Yes</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Sam moaned as Bucky stroked him to the edge, so much better than he could ever do for himself.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m yours,” Sam whimpered, “have been for a really long time, just waiting for you to catch on.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky huffed a laugh, grinding up against Sam’s ass.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Always meant to be mine, just like I'm yours, sweetheart. Entirely yours.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam threw his head back, searching.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky took the hint, and finally claimed Sam’s mouth.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With the alpha’s cock pulsing against his ass, and his hand stroking Sam, the omega was pushed over the edge and into oblivion. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>~~~~~~~~~~</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You know I love you right?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky asked when they had both come down from their respective highs. The alpha had pulled Sam over so he was laying across his chest. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes, you giant oaf.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I should have never lost control with you that day back at the compound. It wasn’t right.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know, but not once have I ever truly regretted what happened. Now let me sleep.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam swore he could feel Bucky grin against him, letting his own worries drop.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“And here I thought you’d be more amicable after I made you cum, no bedside manner whatsoever.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam swatted his chest, feeling the vibrations of laughter rumbling underneath him. How had he kept himself from this happiness for so long. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You didn’t even put your dick in me, don't get too smug just yet.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Is that a challenge?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam squawked when Bucky pinched his ass.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Not when I'm trying to sleep,” Sam argued, forgetting how much he had missed their ridiculous back and forth.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright sweetheart, you’re right. You do need your beauty rest.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sam let that one slide. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky started petting his hair, helping the omega slip off into oblivion. It was just as Sam felt his mind drift off that he answered his mate properly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I love you, too,” Sam said, feeling a kiss press against his forehead. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It had started with a shirt, Sam recalled as darkness engulfed him, but it most certainly had not ended there. </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>As always thank you all so much for reading, I hoped you enjoyed.</p><p>I am so excited for the new sam/bucky show to drop in order to get new ideas for more fics in the future, but i don't rlly have anything planned rn</p><p>For now you can follow us @kca1516 on tumblr for more content, and once again thank you for reading!</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks for reading, comments and kudos are always appreciated, follow us on tumblr @Kca1516 for more!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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